Ecosystem-wise, Berlin has some things going for it that most Western European capitals lack. For starters, it’s cheap to work and live there. Culturally and historically, Berlin is a more natural gateway between Europe’s mature Western economies and the surging talent in Eastern Europe. And Berlin has a surging creative class, largely made up of transplants. It’s become the place where misfits in Europe– people who want to be artists and creators, people who don’t fit in rigid social structures of cities like London– flock to do what they want.

That risk-taking, misfit creative class doesn’t always give rise to out-of-the-box startups, but it was a crucial ingredient in the development of startup ecosystems in San Francisco and Tel Aviv. It’s also something that London has long been criticized as lacking.

If London feels like a European New York; Berlin feels like a European Portland or an Austin or a Boulder. And perhaps one day a European San Francisco.

So we feel we are at the right place to start our new venture. Stay tuned.